Dr. R. Venkata Kesavan, a science graduate from the University of Madras, has obtained his Masters as well as M.Phil degree in Library & Information Science from the Annamalai University. He has recently completed his Ph.D programme, at the University of Mumbai (DLIS). He has over 22 years of rich experience in Library and Information Services Management, Knowledge Management, Digital Preservation, design and delivery of Internet based multimedia information services.

He had successful stints as the Head of Dhirubhai Ambani Resource Centre (Reliance Group), Mumbai, Head of Library and Information Services, British Council - South India (http://library.britishcouncil.org.in/ ), and Head of MAGINDIA.COM, Mudra Communications Ltd. He also worked for reputed organizations such as Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India and ATIRA – both at Ahmedabad.

He is currently with The Times of India Group as the DGM & Head, Times Archives & Knowledge Centre, Mumbai.

Dr. Venkata Kesavan has published / presented / delivered over 50 papers / presentations / talks in various publications and national as well as International conferences such as ILA, CALIBER, ICDL, MANLIBNET, AMLA, IFLA, FID. His website project MAGINDIA.COM (2000-2008) has won over 50 international web awards. In the year 2000, he has won the ‘ILA-DR C. D. Sharma Award’ for best paper presentation during ILA National Conference. He has conceptualized the Librarians’ Day programme for Ahmedabad Library Network (ADINET) in 1994 and was the Convener of the programme during its first two years. He has won MANLIBNET-3B Bharat Book Bureau) Best Paper Award 2012, in MANLIBNET International Conference.

He was a member of ‘Ad-hoc Board of Studies in Information Science’ of the SNDT University, Mumbai (2010-12).

1.     'Collection Development in Raja Muthaiya Dental College Library'. Paper Presented in the DRTC National Seminar held at Bangalore in 1991.

2.      M. Phil Thesis: ‘Investigations on the Library Usage and Information Needs of Textile and Allied Subjects Professionals in India with Special Reference to ATIRA Library and NICTAS’, submitted at DLIS, Annamalai University, 1994 (Research Guide: Dr. M. Suriya)

3.      'Role of Library Networks in the Socio-Economic Development of the Society'. Paper Presented in the Librarians Day Seminar, organised by ADINET, Ahmedabad in August 1994.

4.      'CD-ROM Databases: The Practical Information Solution for Librarians'. Paper Presented in CALIBER -96 Organised by INFLIBNET in February 1996.

5.      'Science and Technology Libraries: Preparing themselves for the Future'. Paper Presented in the Seminar on "Special Libraries and Information Technology" Organised by INFLIBNET and ADINET, held at Ahmedabad in August 1996.

6.      'Promoting Local Library Networks towards Self-sufficiency: Strategies and Techniques with Special Reference to ADINET'. Paper Presented in XVII National Seminar of IASLIC, held at Calcutta in December 1996.

7.      'The Internet and Entrepreneurship Research'. Paper Presented in The National Seminar on "Current Trends in Entrepreneurship Research", Organised by EDI India, Ahmedabad in February 1998.

8.      'Infopreneurship: A New Breed of Entrepreneurship'. Paper Presented in the National Seminar on "Current Trends in Entrepreneurship Research", Organised by EDI India, Ahmedabad in February 1998.

9.      'Application of IT for Achieving Excellence in Library and Information Services: Experiences at EDILIC'. Paper Presented at the National Convention on 'Business Management Information: Current Scene and Future Trends' Organised By IIM, Ahmedabad, in March 1998.

10.  `Internet: A Tool for Library and Information Science Professionals'. Paper Presented in the Seminar on "Changing Role of Library and Information Professionals and Centres in the Context of Information Technology", Organised By ADINET, Ahmedabad, in August 1998.

11.  `An Information System for Small Entrepreneurs: A Model For The 21st Century". Paper presented in the FID International Conference and Congress 1998, held at Delhi in October 1998.

12.  'Library Networking through the Internet: Some Thoughts'. Paper Presented in the One-Day Seminar on “Vadodara Web: A Library and Information Network” Organised by the VALIC and ILA at Baroda in Jan. 1999.

13.  Internet: A Global Library for Business Management Education and Research'. Paper Presented in CALIBER- 1999, organised by INFLIBNET, at Nagpur University in February 1999.

14.  'Internet: A vital tool for offering reference services in Academic Libraries'. Paper presented in the ILA National Conference held at Baroda in August 1999.

15.  Use of Internet in Library and Information Services: a Case Study of Business School Libraries of USA. Paper Presented in Library Vision 2010, 45 ILA All India Library Conference, held at Hissar, 23-26, December 1999.

16.  'Virtual Libraries: Problems and Prospects with reference to MAGINDIA.COM'. Paper presented in Librarians Day 2000 seminar organised by ADINET in 2000.

17.  'Ensuring Quality Management in Advertising and Marketing Libraries'. Paper presented in the 46th All India Library Conference of ILA held at Ahmedabad in January 2001. For this Paper I won the ‘ILA-Dr. CD Sharma Award’ for the Best Written and Presented Paper, a prestigious National Award given by the Indian Library Association (jointly with Co-author - Shailesh Yagnik, MICA).

18.  Given a talk on 'Web Based Information Services' at the two-day seminar/training programme on ‘Web Designing for NGOs’ organised by INDEV in association with UNICEF, held at the British Council, Chennai, November, 2002.

19.  Acted as the ‘Rapporteur General’ during the MALA Platinum Jubilee Celebrations and its Seminar on the theme “Information Professionals for the Digital Era”, January, 2003, Chennai.

20.  ‘Skills and Competencies for LIS Professionals.’ Annual Lecture delivered under Dr. S. R. Ranganathan Endowment, at the Annamalai University in Jan 2004.

21.  ‘The Latest Trends in Digital Libraries.’ Annual Lecture delivered under Dr. S. R. Ranganathan Endowment, at the Annamalai University in January 2004.

22.  Published a paper entitled ‘Remote Access to e-resources: a dream comes true in India’, Infonews, British Council, UK, 2004.

23.  ‘Planning, Developing and Managing the Hybrid Libraries: Experiences of the British Council Library Network in India’. Paper (Poster Session) presented in the International Conference on Digital Libraries, (ICDL 2004), Organized by TERI and Department of Culture Govt. of India, held at Delhi in February 2004.

24.  Conducted a workshop on ‘Online Resources & Services’ organized by the British Council, Chennai in March 2004

25.  Participated in the Expert Panel discussion on ‘Future of the books” organized by ICFAI, Mumbai in August 2006.

26.  Through the Dhirubhai Ambani Resource Centre, compiled information resources (pictorial as well as published resources, timeline) for the Coffee Table book entitled, Dhirubhai Ambani : The Man I Knew, published by the Reliance Group, March 2007.

27.  Presented a paper titled 'Business Information and Knowledge Support Services at the Times Archives and Knowledge Centre: A Case Study' at the 9th Annual Convention of MANLIBNET, 4 - 6 February 2008 at ICSSR, New Delhi

28.  Delivered a special lecture on the topic “The Future of Librarianship: The Road Ahead” at the Annual General Meeting of the BOSLA held on 10 May 2008 at TISS, Mumbai

29.  Delivered a special lecture on the topic ‘E-libraries: Collection Development, Organisation and Management’ at the SLA-Webinar organised by SNDT-DLIS & American Centre, held on August 8, 2008 at AIRC, Mumbai.

30.  Delivered a special lecture on ‘E-library Services: Collection Development, Organization, and Management' Organised by PULISA, at the MCCIA, Pune, on September 12, 2008.

31.  Compiled information resources for the book titled ‘The Times of Media’ published by Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd., India, November 2008.

32. Delivered a special Lecture on 'E-Library Services: Collection Development, Organization, and Management' at the 8th Refresher Course for College Librarians by UGC Academic Staff College & Dept. of Library and Information Science,  Jawaharlal Nehru Library, University of Mumbai on January 12, 2009.

33.  Published a paper titled 'Digital Library Services: A Practical Approach for Collection Development, Organization and Management' in the Journal of Library, Information and Communication Technology, Vol. I Issue 1, March 2009: pp. 5-24.

34.  Presented a paper titled ‘Digital preservation and access to print media resources: experiences at the Times Archives, India’ at the IFLA International Newspaper Conference 2010, IGNCA, New Delhi, 25-28, February, 2010.

35. Presented a paper entitled. Design, Delivery and Management of Business Information Services at the 'Times Archives and Knowledge Centre’, during the 'Librarians Success Stories' One Day Programme organised by TCS and SLA Asian Chapter, at TCS Pune on Saturday, 26th Feb.2011. Also chaired a technical session in the same event.

36. Gave a talk on the topic 'Expectations From the LIS Schools: Some Thoughts' during the Panel Discussion on the theme 'Our Students : Your Pride’  organised by the SHPT School of Library Science (as part of its Golden Jubilee celebrations), SNDT University, Mumbai on July 6, 2011.

37. Delivered a lecture on the topic 'Digital Preservation and Access to Information Resources: Challenges and Opportunities', during the UGC Refresher Course for Librarian and Library Science Teachers, on the theme "New Trends in Library Management and Challenges in Information Science.” organised by the Department of Library & Information Science, University of Pune, on Tue, December 6, 2011.

38. Delivered a lecture on the topic 'Business Information Services in Print Media Libraries: Current Trends', during the UGC Refresher Course for Librarian and Library Science Teachers, on the theme "New Trends in Library Management and Challenges in Information Science.” organised by the Department of Library & Information Science, University of Pune, on Tue, December 6, 2011.

39. Delivered a lecture on the topic 'Digital Preservation Initiatives in Corporate Archives: A Strategic Approach', during the "Corporate Technical Seminar on Challenges and Opportunities in Library and Information Science", organised by the Aditya Birla Group, at The Aditya Birla Institute of Management Learning (Gyanodaya), Navi Mumbai on February 3, 2012.

40. Delivered a special lecture on 'Information Management in Media Centers: Best Practices at the TAKC, during the UGC- Refresher Course in Library and Information Science organised by the Department of Lib & Information Science, VPM's Joshi-Bedekar College, Mumbai on August 08, 2012.

41. Delivered a special lecture on 'Digital Library Development Using In-house Collections:  A Strategic Approach for LIS Professionals', during the National Workshop on Dspace and Koha Software conducted by The Department of Library and Information Science and Jayakar Library, University of Pune on August 4, 2012.

42. Presented a paper entitled 'Managing Organizational Knowledge in Newspaper Business: A Tactical Approach for LIS Professionals' at MANLIBNET 2012 - International Conference on  the theme 'Creating Wisdom & Knowledge Through Shared Learning', held at the IIM Indore from 11-13 October. This paper has won the 'MANLIBNET-3B  Bharat Book Bureau) Best Paper Award 2012.

43. Co-edited the Proceedings of the MANLIBNET 2012 - International Conference on the theme 'Creating Wisdom & Knowledge Through Shared Learning, held at the IIM Indore from 11-13 October, Published by the Management Libraries Network, October 2012.

44. Delivered a special lecture on the topic 'Digital Library Management: Strategic Framework' at the Refresher Course for Library Science Teachers and Librarians, on the theme, 'New Trends in Library Management and Challenges in Information Science' Organised by UGC & Dept. of Library and Information Science, University of Pune, on December 10, 2012.

45. Delivered a special lecture on the topic 'KM in Corporate Organizations: An overview and experiences at the Times Group, at the Refresher Course for Library Science Teachers and Librarians, on the theme, 'New Trends in Library Management and Challenges in Information Science' Organised by UGC & Dept. of Library and Information Science, University of Pune, on December 10, 2012.

46. Delivered an invited talk on the topic ‘Digital Preservation and Access to Print Media Archival Resources: A Strategic Approach’, at the 1ST NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF AMLA (Association of Media Libraries and Archives) - AMLANC-2013, on the theme ' Managing Indian Media Libraries and Archives: Challenges, Opportunities and Best Practices', held at JNU, New Delhi, during 4-5, February 2013.

47. Presented a paper entitled 'Current Trends In Media Library and Information Services: Experiences at The Times Archives and Knowledge Centre (TAKC), at the 1st NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF AMLA (Association of Media Libraries and Archives) - AMLANC-2013, on the theme ' Managing Indian Media Libraries and Archives: Challenges, Opportunities and Best Practices', held at  JNU, New Delhi, during 4-5, February 2013.

48. Acted as the Rapporteur General of  AMLANC-2013 Conference, held at  JNU, New Delhi, during 4-5, February 2013, and prepared the Conference Report on the theme,  ' Managing Indian Media Libraries and Archives: Challenges, Opportunities and Best Practices'.

49. Delivered a talk on 'Current Trends and Best Practices in Library and Information Services at the Times Archives and Knowledge Centre (TAKC)' at the Librarians' Day Celebration 2013 programme, on the theme 'Innovations in Marketing Library Services' Organised by Welingkar Institute of Management Development and Research, (We School), Mumbai, on  13th  August 2013. Also acted as a Moderator of the 'Open-House Q & A Session' of the Programme.

50. Delivered a talk on 'Effective Knowledge Resources Management for Knowledge Workers: Current Trends and Future Prospects’ at the ‘KRM 2013 Seminar’, on the theme, “Convergence of Resources Technologies and Service – Trends and Challenges”, organised by The Tata Memorial Library in association with National Health Science Library Association of India (HLAI) during 21-22 Oct 2013, at Mumbai.

51. Presented a paper entitled ‘Digital Preservation and Permanent Access to Print Media Resources at the TAKC, India: A Case Study’, at the APA / C-DAC International Conference on Digital Preservation and Development of Trusted Digital Repositories, Jointly Organised by APA & C-DAC, held during 5-6 February 2014, at India Habitat Centre(IHC), New Delhi (India).